Historic quilt comes home

Tupper Field linked to names of friends, relatives stitched in 1894.

Tupper Field linked to names of friends, relatives stitched in 1894.

January 15, 2008|VIRGINIA RANSBOTTOM Tribune Staff Writer

On eBay, the well-preserved antique would have been just a quilt. On display at Mishawaka City Hall, the quilt's value is compounded with history. According to the presentation block, the quilt was presented in 1894 to Sarah Cameron, of Mishawaka, by friends and family whose names and portraits are embroidered in red in each of the 25 white panels. Sarah Cameron was the mother of William Tupper. Tupper Field at Mishawaka High School's Steele Stadium was named after William Tupper, the man credited for the installation of Mishawaka's first electric light system. Mr. and Mrs. William Tupper are among the names embroidered on the quilt. Because the Tuppers were his adopted grandparents from Mishawaka, Robert Burnett, of Mobile, Ala., called City Hall. "He called and said he was going to sell it on eBay unless we could convince him there was a reason not to," said Hannah Lindahl Children's Museum director Peggy Marker. To link the quilt with Mishawaka's history, Marker did some research on Sarah Cameron and the Tuppers. A newspaper story from Jan. 18, 1945, showed that William and Harriet Tupper died accidentally after breathing in gas fumes from a leak in their home. They were found side by side on the basement floor after recently returning from a trip to Chicago where they visited their daughter, Mrs. Robert (Helen) Burnett. William Tupper was the superintendent of the power plant at Dodge Manufacturing Co. from 1891 until 1924 when he became sales manager. He retired from Dodge in 1930. As Mishawaka's first electric and water works plant superintendent, the expert engineer and electrician was credited with giving Mishawaka its first electric light system. From 1910 to 1942, he served on the city school board in every capacity, from treasurer to president. For Tupper's service on the board, the athletic field was named after him. The field was completed in 1939, six years before his death. Tupper had also been a Mason for more than 50 years and bank president for almost 30 years. However, finding information on Sarah Cameron and others on the quilt remain shrouded in mystery. "Friends and relatives might be recognized from someone in Mishawaka, but so far it's a mystery,'' Marker said. "Hopefully, we'll be able to piece together who they all are." There's names like Sabra and Amanda Gibbs, apparently sisters, whose portrait is a scene with one girl sweeping while the other is lying down relaxing. Some panels are decorated with embroidered flowers, but all panels have names, such as Hay, Bender, Hoffman, Bradshaw, Stevens, Becker, Parfue, Peet, White, Rockwell, Lacey, Rodgers, Donley, Cox, Smith and Fassett. Since the donor, Robert Burnett, was adopted from an orphanage in Kentucky by the Tupper's daughter, Helen Tupper Burnett, of Chicago, he had few answers. "He (William) was particularly kind to me, but there is no other connection to family," Burnett said in a phone interview. "I was bundled up a few times and taken there (Mishawaka) on occasions. "But it's just childhood memories,' he said. "They lived in a nice house on the river and he was a good man." Burnett said his mother had a sister, Vesta, who died early in life, leaving Helen the only Tupper heir. While living descendants may find several ancestors named on the quilt, the Tupper namesake seems to have ended with Tupper Field. Burnett described the Tupper's only surviving daughter as a feminist who married later in life after earning several college degrees. "She worked at the University of Chicago at the nursing school and was big in the League of Women Voters," he said. The quilt is currently on display at Mishawaka City Hall along with an autograph book that was found wrapped inside. "It's very historical and unique," Marker said. "It's not your typical quilt pattern and is in excellent condition after being stored in cedar." As a longtime Marine, Burnett had the quilt placed in a green, Marine Corp locker box and packed it with cedar, where it had rested since 1957. "The quilt has no value here in Alabama," Burnett said. "I decided donating it to the people of Mishawaka would give it historical value." Simulating the quilt's past, an Indestructo Trunk shares the display case to remind people of how people cared for their valuables in the early 1900s. Indestructo Trunks were made by National Veneer Products Co. of Mishawaka. Every trunk was lined with cedar for preservation. Staff writer Virginia Ransbottom: vransbottom@sbtinfo.com (574) 235-6344